Tuesday, October 07, 2008

Inhaled steroids in the long term management of COPD

A recent article in Today’s Hospitalist provided a roundup of recent clinical trials on this subject with links to primary sources. Although controversy persists it appears there is a role for salmeterol and fluticasone in combination.

1 comment:

Anonymous
said...

The way they're currently being treated, it seems that "COPD" and "asthma" represent a distinction without a difference. If they both respond similarly to a beta2-adrenergic agonist and a glucocorticoid, why are they even separate diagnoses? It stands to reason that two conditions with the same symptoms which respond to the same treatment are in fact one condition.

About Me

Originally a traditional internist, I became a hospitalist in the early days of the “movement.” I'll be writing about clinical topics, mainly in hospital medicine. Occasionally politics and other stuff creep in. This content does not constitute medical advice (consult your physician) nor is it authoritative (check primary sources).